A Hogwarts Tale
by Alatariel Nolatari
Summary: A young girl is sent off to attend her first year at Hogwarts. She is astounded when she doesn't get sorted into the house of her preference, while the friends she has made get sorted in a rival house...
1. Chapter 1

**A HOGWARTS TALE**

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**Disclaimer: **I don't own J.K. Rowling's characters. I only claim ownership of new characters introduced by myself.

**Author's Note:** This is the very first time I wrote a fanfiction story (and not just in the Harry Potter world) so I would appreciate any feedback - positive or negative - you can give me. Please note that English is not my first language and I have no beta, so be gentle.

**CHAPTER ONE**

The light of the sun waned as the train covered its last miles towards its destination. The view had been pleasant enough when they set off, but had gradually become more stunning over the hours. Suburbs became meadows, meadows became hills. The occasional lake would shimmer in the sunlight, its ripples increasing or nearly disappearing as gusts of wind came and went. It appeared the further they travelled away from London's train station, the more magical the surroundings seemed to get. Regina had her own ideas about what any actual 'magical' surrounding would look like precisely, but that and many other things she had yet to find out for herself. And yet here she was, already wearing the black school robe and cloak all first year students had had to purchase; seated in one of numerous compartments of the Hogwarts Express.

She had heard many tales about this School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Her bedridden grandfather would often tell her of the joyful years he spent at Hogwarts. Her favourite one out of all his stories, though, was when he told of how exuberant her father Reginald – who she had been named after – had been when his first letter had arrived. Her grandfather would smile sadly when he spoke of his son. He and Regina missed him so, as did her Muggle mother Gwendolyn. The latter had seen her world collapse when she lost her husband. Though she grieved for his death, she was also angry at her late husband for leaving her behind to raise Regina by herself. Even as a toddler Regina had looked a lot like her father, so Gwendolyn had had no trouble taking it all out on this miniature version of Reginald from then on. She would often remind her daughter how respectable a man her father had been, and wondered out loud why he hadn't passed down those genes to his daughter. She didn't have to think twice about using her husband's authority as her own when ordering her daughter around either. 'If your father was still alive you wouldn't have dreamed of disobeying _him_, so do as I say!' or: 'You are a disgrace to the name of Garland! What would your father have to say about that?' When her mother used the Garlands' name to pressure her, Regina would wisely bite her tongue so as not to blurt out which one of them the Garland was and which one the Muggle. The young girl couldn't get her head round the fact that a decent wizard like her father had married a vicious woman like _her_. In ways such as these, Gwendolyn's frequent use of her husband's death to excuse her actions drove Regina mad with frustration and grief.

All in all, it moved Regina greatly to hear her grandfather talk about her father's life, though her mother would of course regularly interrupt them. Once, Gwendolyn had been highly displeased when her father-in-law dug up an anecdote of one of Reginald's not so brilliant and even downright foolish acts and she caught Maxwell Garland and his granddaughter both laughing warmly at the memory.Gwendolyn had snarled at them both to 'shut their mouths, and how dare they speak so disrespectfully of Reginald in the house of his birth!' When Regina's grandfather protested to her absurd insinuations, Gwendolyn had thrown a fit and threatened to throw him out of her house, because yes, he had heard that right, it still was _her _house!

Regina envied the Muggle girls in her class who had a good relationship with their mothers. She found it harder and harder to ignore her mother's cutting remarks, though she found comfort in her grandfather and the stories he told her. When the kindly old man shared his memories of his son, it allowed Regina to put an image of her father together piece by piece; and she stored it well into her memory and relived it in her dreams.

As it was, when her grandfather spoke of the school his grey eyes would light up and his voice would often trail off as he brought up many fond memories of his stay at Hogwarts. She would beg for more stories about how he rode his first broom, managed his first proper charm or brew his first successful potion. She would sit by his bed and listen to him for hours as he reminisced the good old days, recalling even the smallest details of the castle. He had been a Hufflepuff, while his son had been a Gryffindor, so she was told. When Regina asked if her grandfather thought she would make a good Gryffindor as well, he would kindly assure her she would do great no matter which house she would be placed in.

Suffice to say the 11 year old girl was tremendously looking forward to step in her family's footsteps and become a witch.

It had not yet been morning when the letter came. She had practically been bouncing off the walls in excitement when she showed the parchment to her grandfather, a huge grin plastered on her face. The next day, her mother had taken her to by _far_ the oddest neighbourhood she had ever been to, to purchase her school supplies. Gwendolyn had given her money to buy the books she would need, school garments, a wand (this one purchase had particularly excited the young girl), a kettle stuffed to the rim with potion and other supplies, and finally: a cat. Regina had never been allowed a pet before, and was pleasantly surprised to say the least when her mother barked at her to 'pick one from the shop, silly girl, what are you waiting for?'

Said feline was now snoozing and purring softly on her lap as Regina watched the sloping landscape pass by. She had spend most of the journey like this; absently stroking Oddball (a name the black cat with one blue and one yellow eye and a peculiar temper most definitely deserved) and watching the scenery. She wasn't really anti-social by nature – just a bit too shy for her own good perhaps – but the group of fellow first years she shared this compartment with had been particularly rude. The muscular boy sitting next to her on the far end of the bench would have looked very fearsome if it wasn't for his ridiculous pudding bowl haircut. On the opposite bench and facing his more muscular friend sat a thick-set boy with bristly hair. Next to him and thus closest to Regina, a blond boy with a pale and pointed face was perched on the bench. Regina noted the latter did most of the talking.

She had gladly enjoyed the silence when they left the compartment for a while, but when they returned the thick-set boy clutched his knuckles with a handkerchief and she could see it had small blood marks on it. He had apparently injured himself, and his particularly foul mood was clearly catching.

They had barely acknowledged her presence most of the time – something she didn't regret after overhearing parts of their slanderous conversations (she noted most of them involved poking fun at someone named Potter) and sneering remarks about passing students. At some point, though, the boy with the formerly bleeding knuckles had clearly said something amusing at her expense. At least that's what she assumed when the three as one turned their heads in her direction. They stared at her long enough to make her decisively uncomfortable; the thick-set one and his muscular comrade sniggering like loons, the pale blond boy thoughtful for a mere moment before a distinct smirk spread on his face. Regina didn't see his expression turn into a sly smile; she turned her head quickly, felt herself colouring a little and let her gaze fall to her lap where Oddball was cleaning his fur.

Regina decided then and there she didn't like them one bit.

That had been about an hour ago, as far as she could tell, but she still couldn't quite understand what was so bloody funny about her. She was just as plain as any other girl, and in her own opinion even more so. She was neither tall nor short for her age and skinny as a twig. She inherited the grey eyes of her father's side and her mother's raven hair, though hers was much longer and less well looked after than her mother's. At this moment it hung loosely over her left shoulder in a thick braid. There was nothing too peculiar about her face either, at least she didn't think so, and her clothes were now the same as any student's. It could have been her glasses, though. But still, she was hardly the only one who wore glasses on this train and she didn't even find hers that horrible. Or was it Oddball? He did look a tad scruffy; she had to admit that much. But what did they expect? Cats are predators, so obviously not all of them are meant to look like they've just returned from a beauty salon.

She was still caught up in her own thoughts when she noticed the train was slowing down. Not wanting to embarrass herself further, she decided to wait until the three boys had left before she started packing her belongings. She found the garments she wore looked more comfortable than they actually were, and nearly tripped over them when she hauled her cabin trunk onto the platform, almost squashing Oddball under her arm as she did so. The cat wheezed indignantly and squirmed until he was freed of her grip and leapt to the ground. "Oddball, no!" she yelled out, but the cat had already darted into the crowd and vanished from her sight.

She mingled with the other students as they shuffled towards the sound of a booming voice bidding the first year students to leave their luggage and follow him. She soon discovered the voice belonged to a colossal man dressed entirely in pelts, most of which had belonged to ferrets. When she found she had sufficiently given in to the – very understandable – urge of simply gaping at him, Regina only listened to his words of welcome with one ear. The rest of her attention was aimed at detecting possible clues about the whereabouts of her cat. Still scanning the ground for a flash of black fur or uneven eyes, she trotted along with the rest of the students as they were led towards an anchorage where many small boats awaited them. While some of the students were already finding themselves a seat, she helplessly whirled around her own axis to find Oddball – until she spotted a furry black figure dashing off, skilfully avoiding bumping into one of the many legs on his path.

Once she had elbowed her way to the spot she had seen her cat disappear to, though, she had already lost sight of him again. Her eyes flicked back and forth as she gazed at the ground, muttering things such as 'where did that stupid beast go?', 'I should've got an owl' and 'bloody cat'. She was so caught up in her search she didn't see the pair of feet approaching her until she bumped into their owner. She was about to mutter an apology when she saw the person was holding her cat.

"Oddball!"

"I believe this 'bloody cat', as you so well put it, is yours?" She looked up to see the blond boy from the train grinning down at her. Fan-bloody-tastic. The last thing she needed right now was for this stuck-up bully to have another laugh at her expense.

"Yes, he is. Thanks," she murmured as she took over the now dubiously calm feline from him. She gave the cat a filthy glare; Oddball on the other hand looked at her so smugly you would think he had just caught her something far bigger than a mouse. Regina narrowed her eyes further and held the cat closely to her chest, determined not to let him slip away again.

Much to her dismay, she found the blond boy was still standing in front of her. He made no effort whatsoever to conceal his smirk. He was clearly amused by her demeanour, so Regina thought. She felt herself colouring a little again and made a figurative attempt to glue her eyes to the cat in her arms. "Um… We'd better hurry if we want to catch a seat," was her murmured suggestion.

The boy snorted. "'Seat'? I wouldn't quite call it that. We'd be very fortunate not to sink, anyway," he mocked. Have you seen how utterly _worn_ the material these things are made out of is? Couldn't carry the weight of a squirrel, let alone four students if you ask me." Suddenly the boy's thick-set, bristly-haired friend appeared at his side. Regina now noted he was almost two feet taller than herself, a bit taller even than the blond boy. The boy who had caught her cat looked him up and down and added sneeringly: "Especially not if they're all built like Goyle here." Regina smiled nervously. They really should get to a boat now, falling apart or not. And why she was still talking to this villain – because he really did give her the creeps – she had no idea.

She was saved when the Mount in ferret pelts who called himself Hagrid prompted them to 'climb aboard now, com' on, an' why were you kids still standin' there in the first place'? Regina hurriedly crawled into the boat Hagrid was in, already accompanied by two other students. All the while she clutched Oddball firmly to her chest like her life depended on it.

Once she had sat herself down as comfortably as possible, she noticed to her relief that the blond boy strode to the other side of the anchorage to one of the few boats with less than four passengers. The thick-set boy she now knew as Goyle was sent off to find his own spot somewhere else after much arm-waving and shouting from the blond one. "I will_ not_ go down with this wonky excuse for a boat because _your _granny doesn't know when to stop force-feeding you cookies! Gerrof!" it echoed. She couldn't help but grin.

"Bi' shenshi'ive, tha' Malffoy, ain' he?" A tall boy with bright red hair and a mouth full of candy elbowed his dark-haired friend and grinned. The shorter boy with glasses chortled. "How many times must I tell you? Talk first, stuff your mouth later. I didn't understand a word of that." The red-haired boy adopted a pained expression and swallowed what was left of the candy all at once. He turned slightly pinkish, that way partly camouflaging his freckles for the briefest of moments. The boats chose this moment to set sail, although Regina thought you couldn't really call it that. Were they moving entirely on their own or was she imagining things? Surprised cries from other students and the redhead's quiet 'wow' confirmed her suspicions. When they had adequately uttered their astonishment and awe, the red-haired boy – the shade of his face now returned to normal completely – turned once more to his friend.

"As I was saying, Harry," he started, excessively emphasising every syllable, "bit sensitive, that Malfoy, isn't he?" He puffed out his chest and did his best to look smug and superior. "Draco the Dreadful, lord and ruler of the wizard world if you have to take his word for it, but scared of getting a wee bit wet." The red-haired boy collapsed into giggles and it looked like there was a fairly good chance he would wet_ himself_ he was laughing so hard. The boy named Harry also laughed out loud, and Regina found her grin couldn't broaden any more so she chuckled as well.

It was only then the two boys seemed to notice her. "Oh hello," the redhead said, recovering from his laughing fit. "I'm Ron Weasley," he said, holding out his hand. While she shook it, he continued: "And this is Harry Potter." Harry looked vaguely uncomfortable when Ron introduced him, but shook her hand anyway and greeted her. "Hi. I'm Regina Garland." Ron studied her face for a while as if expecting some sort of reaction from her, but she had no idea what she was supposed to react to. Was there some kind of wizard etiquette in greeting she wasn't informed about?

"What," Ron blurted out, "no 'Harry POTTER?! Is he really… Oh my god!'" He continued stammering and gibbering, so Regina was led to believe he was doing a rather well impression of a hyperactive fan-girl when she met a band member or actor she had a crush on.

"Ron," Harry murmured, clearly feeling very awkward by now. Ron laughed: "Oh Harry, you have to admit it: The famous Harry Potter! Judging from all the staring and giggling girls – _and_ boys, mind you – we bumped into on the train, you'd expect _everyone_ to know about you, wouldn't you?"

Regina suspected she might feel as uncomfortable as Harry Potter did by now. At least now she knew why Harry had looked so uncomfortable when they were introduced, but she felt she had clearly missed something here. "I'm awfully sorry," she started, "but I can't say I've ever heard of you." She shrugged apologetically.

Harry looked slightly relieved and looked like he was about to say it didn't matter in the slightest, but Ron butted in. "The Boy who Lived? The only one to ever have survived You-know-who's deadly curse?" He gaped at her meaningfully with eyes opened wide. Harry shifted slightly in his seat, his face reddening a little. Regina's eyebrows shot up to meet her hairline at the mention of he who shall not be named, but she could only shake her head apologetically as an answer. "Blimey!" Ron exclaimed. He turned to his friend again. "Well Harry, it seems you have one less shrieking fan-girl to worry about." He grinned when he added: "Not that you lack those, really." Harry gave his friend a playful punch in the ribs. "Oh, shut it, you."

Suddenly something dawned upon Regina. "Wait, I think I may have heard your name after all." Ron shot Harry a triumphant look which unmistakably said 'I told you so'. "But it had nothing to do with You-know-who," she added hurriedly upon seeing Harry's expression. "That blond boy you called Draco Malfoy and those silly friends of his…" She bent forward slightly and lowered her voice. "They were talking about you on the train." When the two of them wanted to know what they had to say, Regina shrugged and told them she hadn't really been paying attention. This was no lie, but still she had overheard more than enough to know Malfoy thoroughly disliked Harry. The blond boy had not been very polite when he had spat out the name 'Potter'. She felt reluctant to tell them that, though she wasn't sure why exactly.

"So you mean you had to spend the entire way in a compartment with _Malfoy_?" Ron pulled a face. He seemed to genuinely feel sorry for her. "We got in a real quarrel with that git and we didn't even have to see his arrogant snout half as much as you did!"

Regina was intrigued. "You had a fight? Oh, is that why one of them had bleeding knuckles?"

Harry chuckled. "Yes, but not by our doing. We had Ron's brave rat to thank for that." Ron sat up a bit in an attempt to make himself look even taller and radiated pride. He softly patted a somewhat bulgy fold in his garment. "Scabbers didn't like the sight of three bullies trying to steal his owner's candy, did you now?" His hand went to reach for his rat but Regina hurriedly shook her head and cast a meaningful look at the cat on her lap. "I'm sure you could think of a better ending to Scabbers' day of glory, am I right?" she grinned.

Caught up in their conversation as they were, they hadn't noticed the boats had almost reached the shore. Hagrid stood, making their boat wobble like mad, resulting in the three students clutching the edge like their lives depended on it. Regina was having a particularly hard time trying not to slide off her seat, as she had Oddball to look after as well. Hagrid shouted out to all students to remain seated until the boats had dragged themselves to shore. "Bloody hell! He could've thought of that himself before he nearly sent us to the bottom of the lake," Ron muttered quietly.

Once all of them had got out of the boats and stood safely on the shore of the lake, Hagrid led the way to the castle. It was every bit as huge as her grandfather had described, Regina noted with delight. The towers were countless and the great doors through which they were about to pass could have allowed even the largest dragon to enter.

Moments before they reached the doors to what she would soon discover was the Great Hall, Regina noticed the students had gone remarkably quiet. Her heart raced as she recalled what her grandfather had told her so many times: How all first year students were to be sorted into their houses at the first evening of their stay. She didn't think she had ever been more nervous in her life.

They passed their baggage before entering the Hall, so Regina took the opportunity to put Oddball in his cage. A few trunks ahead, she saw Ron taking his rat from his inner pocket and unceremoniously stuffing it into a satchel that hung from his luggage. Several owl cages, shrieking birds included, were already piled onto the heap of suitcases and trunks.

When the doors flung open, she trotted after the rest of the students and into the Hall. She wondered in awe at the enchanted ceiling her grandfather had often bragged about. A ghost passed them by, excusing himself but he was rather at the late side. She stared at him wide-eyed – more _through_ him, actually – as did many other students. Her grandfather had assured her ghosts and floating candles were only the beginning of the magic she would encounter at Hogwarts. Despite her nerves, she was also getting increasingly excited.

The four long house tables crowded with older students alone were bad enough to make her feel ill at ease already; each and every face was now turned in the newcomers' direction. But now she spotted the long table at which the teachers sat – some smiling in a friendly manner, others with expressions that suggested they would rather be somewhere else at the time – she felt her stomach turn. The main reason for this was not the presence of intimidating professors in witchcraft and wizardry, though. In front of the teachers' table stood a stool upon which lay the thing she had simultaneously looked forward to and dreaded most: The Sorting Hat. Behind it stood a tall, elderly wizard with a ridiculously long, white beard. He wore colourful wizard robes and a pointy hat which looked like it had seen better days, and introduced himself as Headmaster Dumbledore. He bade the new students welcome at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but Regina's attention was focused solely on the worn, dirty hat on the stool in front of him.

Her grandfather had told her about how he had got sorted. It hadn't taken the Hat long to decide, he admitted, but in his year there had also been some students who had sat on that stool for almost five whole minutes! And what if the Hat decided she couldn't be sorted at all? That she hadn't enough witches' blood in her veins? That her magical abilities were far beyond salvation or even nonexistent; that not even a wizard school as ancient and experienced as Hogwarts could teach someone with this little talent?

She had been so caught up in her worries that she had missed half the welcoming speech already. She tried to focus, but the particularly distressing image of the Hat bursting out into laughter as it was placed onto her head fought for her attention.

When the first student was called forth by a strict looking witch with square-framed glasses Dumbledore had introduced as professor McGonagall, she came back to her senses. The girl who shuffled towards the professor was rather small for her age and looked so jumpy Regina feared she would be scared to death once the Hat started talking to her. Though she not often realised it, she was privileged to have heard so many things about Hogwarts – talking Hats, see-through ghosts and floating candles could not catch her off-guard.

Or that's what she kept telling herself.

'Abbott, Hannah' was sorted into Hufflepuff. A round of applause emerged from the table of said house, and Hannah was given friendly nudges and pats on the shoulder when she went to sit with the rest of her house. Perhaps this wouldn't turn out to be so horrible after all, Regina thought to herself.

Draco Malfoy's friend, who she now found out was named 'Crabbe, Vincent', got sorted into Slytherin. Several of the Gryffindors booed, but Slytherin's cheers overpowered them.

As she waited for her turn, Regina tried not to ponder about which house she suspected she would be sorted into. At home she had contemplated the various possibilities dozens of times, of course, but had never quite come up with a satisfying answer. If she had any preference at all, though, she would of course want to be a Gryffindor, like her father before her. If there was anything she could do to stir up her mother's currently nonexistent pride of her, it would definitely be being sorted into Gryffindor. If, on the other hand, there was anything that could make Regina sink even lower in her mother's esteem, it would most likely be ending up in Slytherin. What she did realise, though, is that her mother only loved one house and hated the other because of her father. As a Gryffindor, Reginald Garland had got involved in many a quarrel with members of the Slytherin house. 'As he _should_ have. It was his right and duty towards his house!' her mother would say. The feud between the lions and the snakes seemed to Gwendolyn the most natural thing on earth, even if she had only heard of it and not experienced it herself. Regina's grandfather on the other hand had always been fairly neutral towards the Slytherins. As a kindly and tolerant Hufflepuff, he assured his granddaughter all houses were equally matched. All four of them had brought and would still bring forth great wizards and witches.

Still, Regina thought that if a clear numskull like_ Crabbe_ got sorted into Slytherin, where folk were after all supposed to be 'cunning', she dreaded to think how bad the older students must be; which was a second reason why she would gladly be sorted into any other house.

Or did prejudices of that kind in fact prove her worthy of Slytherin?

"Garland, Regina."

She gulped upon hearing her name. Were there really no more students whose last name began with an 'F'? She took a deep breath and bit her lip nervously. This was it, then.


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

The black-haired witch peered at her over the top of her glasses as Regina nervously cleared a way through the students around her. She felt every eye in the Hall fixed on her as she shuffled closer to the stool. Professor McGonagall gestured for her to sit down. As she did so, for a moment she could see the familiar faces of Ron Weasley and Harry Potter, looking at her expectantly. She also caught a glimpse of Malfoy, his light hair and pale skin forming a strong contrast with the two Indian girls he was standing next to. Then the professor placed the Hat on her head. Just as it had been for most students before her, the Hat was too big for Regina and all she could now see was its rim. Regina started when she heard the voice, because although she knew it would come, the deep, scraping sound scared her for a moment. She screwed her eyes shut tightly and anxiously waited for the Hat to make a decision.

"Hm… Well, well. What do we have here? Ah yes, a shrewd mind, no doubt, with a keen eye for details. Let's see… Ah, you wish to prove your worth to your family, hm? Quite ambitious, this one… Yes, you could do great things, little girl. Great things, indeed."

Regina shifted on the stool and bit her lower lip nervously. 'Great things'? She had no idea what that was supposed to mean. It was probably just something the Hat said to all students, she figured. And hoped.

The Sorting Hat was silent for the briefest of moments before shouting out loudly so that the entire Hall could hear it: "SLYTHERIN!"

As the Slytherin table burst out into applause and professor McGonagall lifted the Hat from her head, Regina slid off the stool with a baffled look on her face. She set a few dilatory steps in the direction of the cheering, but halfway she turned her head slowly to give the Sorting Hat a last stunned glance. She furrowed her brow in a non understanding manner, but turned on her heel and moved on. In the corner of her eye she could see Harry and Ron following her with their gazes; Harry with disbelief in his eyes, Ron with a look of sheer horror on his face. The two exchanged looks and Regina imagined she could positively _hear_ his thoughts as she saw Ron whispering to Harry. 'Can you believe we just made friends with a _snake_?!' She quickly shook off these images and hurried to the Slytherin table. She felt she needed to have a sit down.

'Bullstrode, Millicent', 'Davis, Tracey' and 'Crabbe, Vincent' were already sat at the Slytherin table. The first sat up proudly, occasionally stroking a lock of pitch-black hair out of her face; the second, a blonde girl with a rather large olfactory organ, grinned in such a manner an outsider could easily be led to believe she had just won the lottery. The two girls sat opposite to each other while Crabbe was slumped next to Davis.

Many questions raged through Regina's mind as she sat herself down next to Bullstrode and thus opposite to Crabbe (although leaving a few seats open and thus avoiding the gorilla-like boy had looked far more appealing, Regina figured it might be considered rude), but the one that throbbed her skull most viciously was both simple and complicated: 'Why?' She hadn't been quite so preoccupied with her own thoughts to have missed the Sorting Hat's song. Fair enough; she had never really had an opportunity to find out whether she was _'brave at heart'_, so why Gryffindor had been out of the question, she could grasp, if necessary. '_Those patient Hufflepuffs are true'_, though, had come somewhat closer to her vision of herself. But, what had seemed almost perfect was when the Hat had sung: '_Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,__ i__f you've a ready mind,__where those of wit and learning,__will always find their kind.' _She had always been eager to learn, even as a small child. The more stories her grandfather had told her over the years, the more she had delighted at the prospect of exploring the wizarding world and absorbing all the knowledge that awaited her there. So why not sort her into Ravenclaw?

'_Or perhaps in Slytherin__  
__You'll make your real friends,__  
__Those cunning folks use any means__  
__To achieve their ends...'_

Any means.

Regina's pondering was disturbed by the loud outburst of cheering at the arrival of 'Goyle, Gregory'. He sat himself down next to Crabbe and they sniggered stupidly at each other. Regina raised an eyebrow as she remembered from the train they seemed to do that a lot. Next came 'Greengrass, Daphne', a brunette with a haughty expression apparently glued permanently to her face.

The next person to join their table was Draco Malfoy. It had seemed to Regina that the Sorting Hat hadn't even touched his head when it loudly exclaimed: "Slytherin!" Adopting the most presumptuous expression Regina had seen him wear thus far, Malfoy paced towards the Slytherin table and took the seat next to Goyle. The silvery-haired boy raised his chin proudly and exchanged grins with his two comrades. Regina's lip curled up all by itself as she stared at him in revulsion and annoyance. Honestly, how stuck-up could you possibly get?

The remaining seats at their table were subsequently taken by 'Nott, Theodore', 'Parkinson, Pansy' and 'Zabini, Blaise'. Parkinson, a girl with a face like a pug, settled herself next to Malfoy, meanwhile making no attempt whatsoever to hide her admiration for his lank, silky hair. Regina was wise enough to disguise her chuckle as a cough.

Once the sorting ceremony was over and all first year students found themselves greeted by their new 'families' (Harry Potter and Ron Weasley had both been sorted into Gryffindor, Regina noted, slightly envious), the feast began. First silver plates and cutlery appeared out of nowhere, followed by large plates with various meats piled onto them. Deep bowls filled with all sorts of green vegetables, shiny tankards of gravy, and silver goblets with pale green snake-shaped adornment showed up next, accompanied by huge jugs of pumpkin juice. It wasn't until Regina saw the abundance of food stalled out in front of her that she realised she was quite hungry. She filled her plate with delicacies of many kinds, and when dessert appeared later on, she only had room left to squeeze in a small slice of cake. All the while during the meal, most of her fellow Slytherins chatted amiably to each other. Regina had shook hands and exchanged names and greetings, but had made no effort to join their conversation. She was now happily munching her cake in silence, glad to be left alone with her own thoughts.

She still couldn't get her head round it. She seemed to be nothing like her housemates. When she overheard parts of their conversations, many were reciting their bloodline or boasting about their parents' esteemed profession. Regina sensibly kept her thoughts to herself. After all, being a half-blood, she didn't want to draw their attention to her lineage.

Another thing she didn't share with most of the new Slytherins either, was their obvious pride and satisfaction about having been sorted into the House of the Snake. Regina frowned and sipped her juice thoughtfully. She had dubious thoughts about this house, and dreaded to think what her mother would have to say when she found out the only piece of himself her husband had left her was now what he would have considered a rival in his own days.

Yanked from her reverie, she saw the silvery, hovering shape before she heard the shriek. The Slytherin house ghost had just floated through Pansy Parkinson, and the girl's robes were stained with spilled juice. She still had the goblet in her hand, her knuckles white from her firm grip, her face the picture of horror. Regina joined the others in their laughter – be it not as exuberantly. The pug-faced girl glared at them and tried to get the spots out as best she could. An older student explained to them that while the Bloody Baron usually just hung about looking stern, he would on occasion entertain himself by scaring the living daylights out of unsuspecting boys or girls. Regina made a mental note to always be on her guard.

When it was clear everyone had finished their meals, students of all houses were asked to follow their respective Prefects to the dormitories. Regina couldn't have come up with a better idea herself; she was drowsy from the satisfying meal after a long and peculiar day. They stood and followed the two tall fifth-years that were their Prefects out of the Great Hall. Their way was separated from those of the other houses when they turned down a corridor and descended an endless flight of stairs. Once down, they found themselves in what seemed to be an underground labyrinth of passages. 'The dungeons', Regina thought as the Prefects raised their wands and murmured 'Lumos!'. The glow their wands emitted lit the passages and guided the students on their track. They trotted alongside the damp stone walls and made so many turns Regina had trouble trying to remember the way. 'Left, straight ahead, left again, straight ahead, right, right, left… or was it one more right then? No, no, it was left. Definitely left. Again: left, straight ahead, left again…' she mentally repeated to herself until the group stopped moving suddenly. She peered over the heads of the students in front of her, but could see nothing special about the particular wall they were facing. It looked just like the others had done: bare, cold and clammy.

"Pure-blood!" the male Prefect exclaimed. A concealed door slid open instantly, forming a large crack in the wall. "Remember this password well. Without it you won't get through," he added. "You will be notified when the passwords change, which will be at random intervals." With that, he led the new Slytherins into their common room.

Regina had to admit it was quite something. Rough stone walls and ceiling formed a low, long room lit only by green lamps hung from the ceiling with heavy chains. Indeed green seemed to be the dominant colour, and also returned in the carved chairs that were spread across the room. The large fireplace right across the entrance was not lit.

Boys and girls were separated and Regina and the other girls were shown to their dormitory by the Prefect of the same sex. This was on an even lower level, down winding stairs with rough-hewn steps. The dorm looked similar to the common room, done in greens. Four-poster beds, elaborately carved with graciously slithering snakes and provided with dark green velvet drapes, dominated the room; three on either side of it. The girls found their luggage had already been brought down here. Regina's trunk was put at the foot of the bed in the far right corner, Oddball's cage placed on top of it. Upon hearing the cat's frustrated meows, she hurried to let the poor thing out of his cage. He leapt onto her lap as soon as she had sat down on her bed to admire the woodwork. The bodies of the many snakes were intertwined and coloured a flickering silver. It contrasted beautifully with the dark wood and drapes.

She lifted Oddball onto the pale green bed linen and scratched his head until he purred. The other girls were either unpacking or bickering about wanting to switch beds. Regina decided to get out of her robes and change into something more comfortable, and rummaged through her cabin trunk. She eventually found a pair of simple black trousers and a maroon, knitted sweater. She closed the drapes furthest away from the wall and changed in the privacy of the corner next to her bed. After folding her robes and placing them neatly on her bed, she dug up a hair brush from her trunk, undid her braid and tried to get most of the knots out of her hair. Next, she searched her belongings until she found the book she was looking for. 'The Standard Book of Spells, grade 1', the title said. With the book in her hands, Regina took a moment to look around the room. Bullstrode and Davis both sat on a bed, giggling and whispering excitedly to each other, but the others had presumably returned to the common room.

Regina figured that if she was going to be stuck with her house members for the rest of her stay in Hogwarts, she might as well try and make a friend. She wasn't sure whether she would dare to take initiative, though; but the prospect of being permanently left out pleased her even less. Given the two girls left in the dorm were caught up in their own conversation, she decided to trust her luck and went down the stairs to the common room; spell book in one hand and Oddball under an arm.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: **I am back from the dead. My sincerest apologies for the delay – I've been so busy with all sorts of things that I at one point even forgot about the existence of this fanfic. As a result, I'm a bit out of it and hadn't written anything in a long time before I started this next chapter. I tried my best to make this chapter worthy of your time, but you'll just have to judge for yourselves.

Thanks again to those who reviewed and pointed out typos and other mistakes. They have been dealt with in the previous chapters. Don't hesitate to point out mistakes (be it typos, grammatical errors or remarks about the plot and characterisation in general) in this chapter as well – I am still beta-less and any kind of feedback is much appreciated.

**CHAPTER THREE**

Regina was greeted by a warm glow when she entered the common room. Someone had lit the fireplace and the room bathed in a pleasant, orange gleam. It almost made the room look cosy, even despite the cold, stone walls.

Small groups of students had formed across the room, though most had pulled up armchairs by the fire and were chatting casually. Regina sat a little apart from the other first years, though close enough to the fire to be able to read without having to light one of the green lamps. After sitting Oddball down on her lap, she scanned her textbook, turning page after page, and could hardly wait to practise some of these spells. She was tempted to take out her wand then and there and try one out, but figured it would not leave such a good impression if she were to blow something up. Meanwhile, Oddball kept digging his nails into Regina's lap as he turned about in an attempt to make himself comfortable. Eventually he decided there must be something more interesting for him to do and leapt onto the floor. Regina watched with a smile as the cat set off to explore his new territory. Only one of the other Slytherins in her year had brought a cat – Regina figured the rest of them must have brought owls that were now housed in the Owl Wing – but said feline was quite Oddball's opposite. She had an armchair of her own and was curled up there snoozing lazily; a fat, ginger ball of fur, most likely named 'Princess' or 'Mrs. Whiskers' or another name of such sort. Oddball didn't grant her a second glance and continued his adventurous search for some excitement.

When her cat disappeared from her sight, Regina's attention only half returned to her spell book. She overheard scraps of her classmates' conversation. There was excited gossiping from the girls present and boasting among the males. Pretty soon, the conversation turned to the most popular subject among new students of all houses: the arrival of the 'Boy Who Lived', here, at Hogwarts! Due to the fact that he was not only attending the same school, but was also a student in their own year, the young Potter boy caused quite a stir among his peers.

"Personally, I don't know what all the fuss is about," said Malfoy with a nonchalant hand-gesture. He leaned back in his chair and grinned. "I mean, I met him on the train and he didn't seem all that special to me. A bit slow even, if you ask me." He nudged Crabbe, who was sitting next to him, and they both sniggered.

Regina had a hard time trying not to snort too loudly. She had heard all about Malfoy's attempts to make a friend out of Harry – Ron had very clearly been amused when he told her – and thought the blond boy's attempts to make Harry look bad were a bit sad, really. When more of such slander ensued, she made a point of turning the pages of her book very loudly each time something awful was said about her new friend. Or at least she hoped the two Gryffindor boys would still want to be her friends now she was stuck in this house. She also hoped they didn't think she was just as obnoxious as she found the other Slytherin students to be.

Suddenly, all conversation fell silent when a high-pitched shriek emerged from under one of the first year's armchairs. Before anyone could so much as jump out of their seats in alarm, a whirling ball of black and red fur sped out from under the chair in question in raging fury. The entangled creatures were hissing and lashing out at each other with sharp claws. It took Regina a moment to realize the black half of the violent heap was Oddball. She stared at the fighting cats in shock.

"Queenie!"

The girl with the face like a pug roughly made her way through the bystanders who were now watching the spectacle with interest, some of them cheering on either one of the animals. Pansy Parkinson tried to untangle the two cats and free her beloved pet, but was scratched in the process and backed away with a cry of pain and her hands clutched to her chest. This seemed to have made Regina recover from her initial shock, because she too attempted to break up the fight. The cats' claws didn't spare her from any scratches either, but at last she managed to tear Oddball away from the ginger cat. She had a hard time trying to keep him still, especially since the other cat now lunged at her legs in an attempt to get to her nemesis.

"Could someone please get this beast off me?!"

When no immediate rescue followed, she kicked at the animal, which shrieked and ran off hissing indignantly. Parkinson chased after Queenie, while Regina tried her best to calm down Oddball, meanwhile doing all she could to ignore the amused expressions on the rest of her classmates' faces.

She sat back down in her armchair, all the while whispering softly to her cat and petting him. She checked him for possible injuries, but all Oddball got was a good scare. Her fellow students, though, had got a good show and were loudly discussing the fight. Some mused some sort of rematch would probably be in order, because in the end neither of the cats had had their victory, but Regina just glared at them and continued comforting her cat.

It didn't take long for Pansy Parkinson to show up in front of her, fuming and clutching a wriggling ball of fur.

"You!" she spat out. "That vicious animal of yours attacked my poor sweetheart! You shouldn't be allowed to keep such a rabid beast!"

Regina rose from her chair in a sudden wave of anger, and her shouting was no quieter than that of the pug-faced girl. "I beg your pardon?! Oddball would never do such a thing! He is the sweetest thing alive! How do you know it wasn't your precious Princess that started this whole thing?"

"It's _Queenie_," Parkinson barked, "and I know because… well, look at that ugly thing you're holding! It has 'wild, raving beast' written all over it!"

Before she knew what she was thinking, Regina blurted out: "I would think that you of all people should know not to judge things by the way they _look_!"

Some of the spectators gasped, and then there was a moment of silence. Parkinson apparently had quite of a reputation. Regina took a step back, felt Oddball struggling to break free and tightened her grip. The ginger fur-ball in Parkinson's arms hissed.

Much to Regina's relief, but even more to her surprise, one of the others stepped in at that point. It was Tracey Davis, one of the two girls who Regina remembered chatting in the dormitory as she made her way down to the common room.

"Pansy, I think you're overreacting here," the blond girl said with an air of derision.

Pansy Parkinson positively fumed. "Whose side are you on, anyway?"

Davis snorted. "I'm on the side of the cat that _didn't _try to bite me on the way here, thank you! That thing you have there is dangerous, I tell you."

Parkinson looked surprised for just a moment before she adopted her usual haughty expression again. She glanced at the group of people surrounding them as if looking for support, but when it didn't come she raised her chin up high and said: "Fine. Not my fault you have a poor taste in friends." Then she turned on her heel and walked away, followed by a few hesitant individuals assumed to be friends of hers who looked like they'd really rather be somewhere else at the time.

Regina stared at Parkinson's retreating back until she was out of sight. She was still baffled by all this and didn't know quite how to feel about it. What she did know though was that she was just about ready to kick herself. Making a scene on the first day of school? What was she thinking?

After the incident she sat down with Tracey Davis and thanked her. Most of the other students were once again minding their own business, but Regina did notice occasional glances being thrown in her direction. Malfoy was already up on a chair and waving his arms about, no doubt telling about how he heroically caught the mad, black beast at the lake and gracefully returned it to its owner. She guessed so since Malfoy's audience occasionally gasped and turned to look at her and at the black cat in her lap with a touch of suspicion or a hint of fearful awe in their gazes. Regina rolled her eyes and tried to ignore the whole thing. A few moments later another girl joined the two of them. Regina realised this was the same black-haired girl Tracey had been talking to in the dormitory.

"Regina, was it? I'm Millicent."

Regina would have said she remembered Millicent's name from the Sorting Ceremony, but the girl was far too enthusiastic and kept rattling on without interruption.

"You know, don't worry about Pansy, she's just a bit high-strung, really. They say she's like that because her mummy spoils her and she's used to getting what she wants. Just like that cat of hers, now I think of it. You know, when we were on the train, Pansy was constantly feeding her cat sweets of all sorts, ha, no wonder the fur-ball got so fat. I think Pansy herself should cut back on the sweets too, if you know what I mean..."

And so it went on and on. After a while Regina stopped paying attention altogether. She was happy to simply sit there, let the chatter wash over her and nod every now and then. Oddball purred as she stroked him absentmindedly. The warmth from the fire and the previous excitement during the incident made her feel dozy. She noticed some of the others had already traded in the common room for their dormitories, and soon the rest of them were ushered to their beds by the Prefects as well.

On the way down the stairs, Regina anxiously tried to remember where exactly Pansy Parkinson slept. Keeping the pitiful amount of good fortune she had had today in mind, she half suspected it to be the bed next to hers, but she was lucky. Parkinson occupied the middle bed on the opposite side of the room and didn't even so much as glance in Regina's direction. On Regina's left was Daphne Greengrass, next to which was Tracey's bed. Opposite to Tracey was her friend Millicent, and the bed opposite Regina herself remained empty.

She changed into her pyjamas, didn't think twice about putting Oddball in his cage instead of letting him sleep on her stomach, and exchanged good night wishes with the rest of the girls (apart from Pansy Parkinson, of course). At exactly 11:00 p.m. the lights went out and Regina drew her curtains shut, but there were still whispered conversations between some of the girls. She curled up beneath the blankets and felt sleep creeping in. In the dark, she could make out one blue and one yellow eye staring up at her pleadingly from the cage. Regina mentally shook her head firmly and thought: 'This is the second time you've got me into some sort of trouble, you bloody cat.' She sighed, but then smiled to herself. At least you could say she had, in some way, made friends tonight.

**Author's Note Part Two: **Tracey Davis and Millicent Bullstrode are two of the characters I could find the least information about, so I decided they should become friends of Regina. It's harder to screw up characters that aren't well-known and this leaves much more room for my own interpretation.

I don't know if Pansy Parkinson had a cat or not. I don't think it's mentioned in the books. Again, this is my own interpretation and an attempt to make something interesting out of this. Also, I know little of the behaviour of cats, so feel free to correct me. Unfortunately for me, I've never heard of dogs being allowed as pets at Hogwarts, so this will have to do.

Hope you enjoyed. Next chapter will definitely be up sooner than this one was.


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